A Texas appeals court has concluded that an employer can’t enforce an employment contract against an employee when that contract specifies that the employee remains an at-will employee.

Recent case: Renuka Polimera immigrated to the United States and wanted to stay. She got a job with Chemtex, an environmental testing company that often sponsors immigrants and helps them get their green cards.

After working for the company for a while and beginning the immi­gration process, Polimera signed a contract with Chemtex that stated she remained an at-will employee, but also said that if she left within two years of getting her green card, she would owe the company $20,000.

Chemtex terminated Polimera for cause and then sued her for the money.

The court said the contract wasn’t valid. It reasoned that an at-will employee is free to quit anytime, and holding an at-will employee to a specific time period means she’s not at-will. That contradiction made the contract invalid. (Polimera v. Chemtex, No. 09-00361, Court of Appeals of Texas, 2011)

Final note: Always have an experienced attorney prepare employment contracts. Employers that rely on forms or try to draft contract documents themselves can get into real trouble. A contract that isn’t valid is worthless. What’s more, the time and money spent litigating its validity are wasted.

Tomorrow's Training:

Your employee handbook can be an invaluable organizational tool … or an employment lawsuit waiting to happen. And in recent years, Congress and state legislatures have been busy enacting laws that directly affect your employee handbook. If you haven't kept up, you could find yourself in court....Click here to find out more.